Francis Clifford Smith, a US prisoner who survived eight execution dates and spent more than 70 years behind bars, has died at the age of 101, according to the BBC on Wednesday.

🇳🇬 Here's What Happened

Smith was convicted of first-degree murder in Connecticut in 1950, when he was 25, but maintained his innocence throughout his imprisonment.

He was accused of killing Grover Hart, a night watchman at a Connecticut yacht club, in 1949. Smith was one of two men arrested over the killing, but the other man accepted a plea deal and testified against him.

However, doubts about his conviction emerged over the years. Witnesses later recanted their statements, while another inmate confessed to the murder.

📌 Key Details

One of the officers who interrogated Smith after his arrest also later told the Board of Pardons that he believed Smith was innocent.

“I’m not even sure he was present at the murder,” Major Leo Carroll said, according to the Boston Globe.

Smith was scheduled for execution eight times and was given a last meal on each occasion before his execution was ultimately spared.

He spent more than seven decades in prison, apart from three brief periods of freedom.

In 1967, Smith escaped from prison but was recaptured 12 days later. In 1974, he was allowed to leave prison for Christmas Eve and returned the following day.

He was granted parole in 1975 but was arrested about 10 months later for petty larceny and possession of a weapon, in violation of his parole.

📰 Source: Punch Nigeria